Black Bearded Corazon Corn Dolly CWW7

This traditional ritual object represents a heart and is woven from a specially grown variety of black bearded wheat. The design is thought to pre-date the Spanish Conquest and travelled with settlers to the New World with the introduction of wheat.

The craft of corn dolly making is becoming a dying art: the straw needed for dolly making is becoming harder to find and only grown by a few specialist farmers and, as a result, there are relatively few people making traditional corn dollies on a regular basis – all the more reason to try to ensure that this folk craft survives.
Having stumbled into corn dolly making by chance some years ago the maker of this piece, Carol Partridge, now researches and makes traditional designs associated with different areas of the British Isles as well as looking further afield to similar customs in other countries; her work also includes more modern versions using traditional techniques.